“Quickly! Hide yourselves!” Air Slash whispered.
Shadow Shroud quickly led her companions into a nearby tunnel entrance and hid behind the rocky mouth. Just as they peered out into the chamber where Air Slash still stood, a unicorn stallion with a single katana holstered at his side walked out of another tunnel towards him with two other ponies with swords that seemed to act as something like bodyguards. He leered down at Air Slash with an authoritative expression.
“Father.” Air Slash muttered. The hiding foals were surprised to hear that.
Air Slash’s father shook his head disapprovingly. “Care to explain to me how you managed to let our mine be defiled by those mange-ridden simpletons? Are you truly worthy of those swords you’ve forged with your own hooves?” he asked.
Air Slash looked dejected. “They…..They overran me, father. I fought at the zenith of my skill, but-”
“But you still managed to get captured, and do you know why?” his father said.
“B-……B-Because they-”
“Because they caught you off guard, that’s why. You denied your blades an opportunity to protect you for even an instant, and failed them! You failed our clan! You failed me! Again!” He put his hoof down, startling Air Slash. “How many times have I retrained you over and over again until you got our technique right again only to throw it into the trash again in favor of those series of childish techniques you even dare to call skill!? What kind of Bladerunner do you hope to become!?”
Air Slash peered up at his father in shame. Why was he so mad? Air Slash’s technique was absolutely marvelous as far as the other foals bar Shadow Shroud were concerned. An entire horde of dogs that they altogether struggled with, he took them down with his own two swords with minimal effort, so why should his father, likely a veteran amongst his kin be even remotely disappointed. They wondered.
Air Slash closed his eyes and gulped as he thought back to what Fire Fight had said to him. “I…I-I….Forgive me father, but….I do not believe that you value my skill.” He said hesitantly.
His father narrowed his eyes and drew his sword with his magic. He levitated the sword behind Air Slash and held the back of the blade against him. “What do you mean?” he growled. His bodyguards narrowed their eyes as well.
Air Slash panicked a little with cold diamond enforced steel at his back. He gulped again. “I have skill apart from what you teach me, which I do take to heart. You just never let me use it. I believe that if we further explore what our swords can do, our clan would benef-”
His father pulled his sword closer towards Air Slash. “There’s no benefit to acting like an animal! You have no right to decide how you want to use your blades. We live and use them to serve Equestria, not to use it as a massive dojo!” He scolded. He sheathed his sword. “Even your mother doesn’t approve of your technique, so don’t be fooled if she even sees fit to bid you goodnight. You’ll be working in the forge tonight away for this disgraceful display, so start gathering ore and report there at once!” he commanded.
Air Slash sighed. “Yes, Father…” he muttered.
With that, his father and his bodyguards stormed out the mine. Air Slash just stood there with his head down as he stared at the dirt covered by his shadow. When the adults were out of ranges of perception, the foals emerged from their hiding spots, and walked up to their samurai friend.
“Air Slash…..” Fire Fight said as tried to put his hoof on his shoulder.
“Step away from me, fool.” He growled. He got up and went to the open veins of ore.
“Homie, you ain’t gotta-” Turf War started, but was cut off when Air Slash pointed one of his swords at them.
“Step away, I said!” he growled.
Despite his glare, Fire Fight could see the very same anguish that they’d all suffered. He so desperately wanted to use his unique approach to sword fighting, however unique it was to what he was apparently supposed to be using, but his father, maybe all of his masters wouldn’t have it. He masked all of that with a brave face.
They all backed off. “Maybe we should wait until he’s in a better mood.” Spiral Galaxy whispered.
Fire Fight nodded. “Yeah, I think you’re right.” He faced Air Slash. “Th-Thanks for not letting them know we were here, Air Slash. Look….If…If you need us, we’ll….We’re camping in that cave that goes through the mountain and leads to another valley, ok? Just don’t tell any of the other Bladerunners, ok?”
Air Slash slowly sheathed his sword as he maintained his gaze at the group. He turned around and began carefully cutting the exceptionally tight ore out of the wall.
Shadow Shroud shook her head. “Hmph. Pride has always been a weakness of his family.”
Turf War picked up the other halves of his armaments and sighed. “I cannot believe dis, y’all… How da hell I’m s’posed to fight now?”
Fire Fight grimaced. “I…..could probably try welding them back together? Even if that doesn’t work….maybe there’s….a really tough branch you could use instead? Maybe carve a shield out of a rock?”
“That’d be pretty hard. We might just have to wait until we make to Dodge City and find him some replacements.” Spiral Galaxy said.
Turf War shook his head. “I mean, I bet I could still hit hard, but….damn, man…”
As they walked out of the mine, Air Slash listened intently to their little conversation as he carved away some more ore.
*****
It was late in the afternoon, just about time for an early dinner, so the foals gathered some edible plants and snuck back to their cave. Spiral could feel her horn tingle as her full power returned to her as she stepped out under the sky. The stars seemed to beckon for her to use their power. The walk was a long one after what the foals had just been through.
Shadow Shroud was still fairly disgusted after having to deal with a member of a rival family. She didn’t like the notion of helping a Bladerunner, but she was still Fire Fight’s ally, and however begrudgingly deemed the family of samurais unworthy of her time….not that they really were to begin with.
Even though they had rescued Air Slash, he still managed to not only reject them out of pride, but even bring their mission into question. Fire Fight began to wonder if this whole goal of his was worth it, even feasible. Air Slash seemed to grow up in the very kind of place he’d hoped to create, and was still suffering. He wanted nothing to do with making his utopia anything like what Air Slash’s father might make it look like. He’d seen Turf War and Spiral Galaxy smile ever since he’d brought them aboard, so he must have been doing something right, or were they misguided too? He didn’t even know where to begin with the mysterious Shadow Shroud.
They got back to cave and put their bounty together in pile in which Fire Fight could work with. He got a fire going and put a small pot of water to boil the food in. The ingredients consisted of mushrooms, wild berries that Shadow Shroud knew weren’t poisonous, some edible pine needles native to Mt. Foal, and some leftover apples from their breakfast. Night had fallen and the moon was as luminous as ever, and the stars danced in their shared light. It was going to be a nice stew had Fire Fight not been so occupied with his thoughts and let it boil into a mush. He quickly strained the water and got some makeshift plates made from bark and served what he could.
“Ehh…..sorry, guys…” Fire Fight said. “Today was just…..”
“It’s Air Slash, isn’t it. What a jerk! I know his dad doesn’t seem much better, but….he could’ve shown a little gratitude.” Spiral Galaxy said.
Turf War took a little slurp of the burnt stew. “He did thank us fo’ freein’ his a** at least.” He looked at his sliced armaments. “And it wasn’t his fault my stuff get messed up. Hell, it’s pretty impressive dat he made those damn things!”
“As I understand it, Bladerunners are trained from birth in not only their swordsmanship, but also as artisans with metal. They are expected to forge their own weapons that they would carry throughout their lives. Why else would they have such a huge mine?” Shadow Shroud explained.
“Just like with you and your ninja arts, huh?” Fire Fight said.
Shadow Shroud nodded. “Yes. However, as I said before, the Bladerunners are very proud of their esteem and status as who those are presumed to be Equestria’s only real warriors despite almost never having to go into battle. The only times anypony could ever recall their service was the incident at the royal wedding and the assault from Tirek. Even then, there was little they could do with their priorities set more for their appearance than their actual prowess. I can understand if they were overwhelmed….admittedly so were we, but as you saw with Air Slash’s father, they still try to adhere to Equestria’s eternal sunshine- that simply does not belong in a war environment. It’s the reason why the Shadewalkers even exist.” She ranted.
“Well damn, homegirl. Just let ‘em all know!” Turf War said.
“Hmph. If only it were as simple as that. All of ponykind would never recognize the value of a tried and true warrior, only perfect harmony- something that is simply impossible. Why do you think we’ve remained hidden for as long as we have?” Shadow Shroud retorted
“But you haven’t seen a whole lot of action, right? That’s because Equestria’s at peace. Of course we’re not going to think to highly of fighting. Why do you think we’re running away?” Spiral Galaxy inquired.
“Because we seem to be the only sensible beings in the entire realm that sees the possibility of war and actually prepare for it! Plus, the fact that we’ve seen any action at all means that Equestria isn’t as peaceful as we’d like to believe. I can understand if the good princesses merely want to keep their subjects from worry, but if we truly value our existence, then shouldn’t we actually be ready to defend it?” Shadow Shroud answered.
“That’s exactly what I wonder each time I’m scolded”. They heard a familiar voice coming from the entrance to the valley containing the Bladerunner stronghold.
They looked over to see Air Slash approaching them with his twin katanas at his back along with a pair of saddlebags and a large sack. He gently put the sack down as he descended. “Fire Fight, forgive me. I was childish earlier even though you showed me a great deal of kindness.” He said as he bowed his head.
Still shocked to suddenly see him appear, Fire Fight quickly mustered a response. “Umm….Yeah…..No hard feelings, Air Slash……..What are you even doing here? And what’s in that bag?” he asked.
Air Slash quickly drew his sword and sliced the bag wide open as he sheathed his sword again and pulled out its contents. It was a warhammer about as big as a traffic sign that was mostly chocolate colored, but had had a few black stripes and rings about it. It had an axe head for a pommel so it could be wielded as such. He then pulled out a dark brown colored round shield that was shined to the point of being able to see your reflection. He handed these items to Turf War.
“Turf War, I believe these will replace you destroyed weapons quite nicely, yes?” Air Slash asked.
Turf War just stood there in shock for a second and picked up the arms. They were a little heavier than his previous tools, but it was a negligible difference for a colt of his strength. “F-……Fo’ real, dog!?” he asked with excitement.
Air Slash nodded. “Yes. I mustered those this evening after seeing you fight so valiantly with such….forgive me once more, lackluster armaments. A true warrior such as yourself deserves a weapon worthy of him or herself.” He said.
A huge smile creased the brown Earth Pony’s face as his eyes sparkled brightly. He eager inspected his new weapon. He swung it around carefully to test it and get a feel for how he’d use it and realized that he loved it. “Yooooo! Dis a bad m********* right here!” each swing echoed with power throughout the cave. “I mean, it’s kinda whack that I gotta flip it if I wanna use one side, but it’s all good! Man, I appreciate you fo’ dis. I appreciate you!” He roughly patted Air Slash’s shoulder.
Air Slash chuckled. “You’re quite welcome, friend.” He looked at Fire Fight. “And for you…” He pulled out a pair of dark silver-colored forehoof battle gauntlets with red linings and handed them to Fire Fight.
Fire Fight curiously took them. They surprisingly easy to strap into and fit just right! Pretty secure too. They completely covered the fronts and soles of his hooves while they open in the back allowing for fluid movement. He inspected them closer to see that three tiny little teeth made a triangle around each of their rims. He then punched the wall next to him and was stunned to see his gauntlet shatter through it and leave a heck of a crater.
“Air Slash….You made these for us!? But I thought you said we were just being idiots running around Equestria?” Fire Fight asked.
Air Slash nodded. “I did. That is until you made me realize that I….agreed with you. You asked me… ‘What good is having skill if you can never use it?’, and that’s when I knew I wasn’t alone. For too long have I been held back from attaining the true height of what I can do by the very creeds and doctrines I was born into that I would willingly serve. Now I have an opportunity to become the warrior this land needs…” he bowed to Fire Fight. “If you would have me.”
Fire Fight was caught off guard by the sudden change of heart, but was more than happy to have a capable swordsman like Air Slash along for the ride. He was about to answer when he was cut off.
“No!” Shadow Shroud growled.
Everypony looked back at her to see her leering at the samurai colt. He leered back. “I wasn’t asking you!” he growled back.
This was an obvious concern for the other three. “Are you sure you’d be willing to work with a Shadewalker, Air Slash?” Spiral Galaxy asked him.
Air Slash stood back up. “As much as it pains me, yes. Admittedly, I envy the sense of freedom the Shadewalkers have despite their immoral approach to justice. And….I can attest to our clan being prideful, so I hope to break that trend and earn my pride through hard training. Anything is better than being stuck here.” He answered.
“I refuse!” Shadow Shroud growled.
Fire Fight walked over to her. “Who’s proud now, huh? Shroud, if he’s willing to work with his ‘enemy’, then shouldn’t you? And if you really think about you two aren’t even enemies at all! What is the goal of the Shadewalkers? Why do they exist?” he asked.
“To cull potential and sure threats to Equestria, but they-” Shadow Shroud said, but was cut off.
“Air Slash, why do the Bladerunners exist?” Fire Fight asked him.
“To serve the land with our swords and technique to defend her from-” Air Slash was also cut off.
“Boom! There! You see? You two have the same goal. You were never enemies to begin with. You just can’t agree on how to see it through. This is just another reason why we left Equestria. This is why our parents and peers saw us as so much trouble. We got away from that because we want to be better than that. I know we’ll disagree over certain things at times, but as long as we all share the same vision, I hardly think we have cause to resent one another.” Fire Fight said.
“He’s right, you two. Do you really want to grow into anything like Air Slash’s dad? We have to be willing to learn from each other if we’re gonna grow into better ponies. Shroud, I’ve only managed to start being able to control my magic because you and Fire Fight were so willing to accept me and help me. Not once did you ever think to run away from me, right? And Turf War has just been our number one source of morale even though he swears like a sailor.” Spiral Galaxy said. She put her hoof on Shroud’s shoulder. “Won’t you become a better Shadewalker if you can learn from a rival Bladerunner?”
Shadow Shroud looked at her friend and sighed. “Fine…” she muttered. She looked over at Fire Fight and leered. “But this had better be worth it.” She growled as she drew a kunai.
Fire Fight had gotten used to this, so he didn’t flinch. “It will be, Shroud. I was worth it, wasn’t I? And I’m a nopony.” He said.
Shadow Shroud sighed once more as she sheathed her kunai.
“Oh! Wait a second.” Air Slash said as he reached into the bag once more. He pulled out an azure blue-colored piece of torso armor with hexagonal pads of hard leather reinforced with steel at the edges.. “Spiral Galaxy, I forged this for you.”
Spiral gasped. “Really!?” She levitated the armor to herself and slipped into it. It was a perfect fit! The armor covered her entire torso, even her flank and ran down to just above her elbows. “Thank you, Air Slash!.....But, I don’t really fight like the rest of you do.”
“Indeed, but should you be overrun and unable to defend yourself or without immediate backup, that should come in handy.” Air Slash said. Spiral smiled sweetly at him. “I….unfortunately didn’t have enough material to make armor for the rest of you.” He said. He then looked at Shadow Shroud. “And I highly doubt you’d need anything from my hooves.” He said.
Shadow Shroud flipped her mane. “How intuitive.” She growled.
“If it is of no inconvenience, might we find another location to shelter ourselves that’s further from the stronghold? My father no doubt has noticed my absence and likely has everypony hunting me down.” Air Slash said.
“Good idea. You can have a quick snack from one our bags if you need as we go. We kinda already had dinner. And…” Fire Fight said.
“Yes?” Air Slash asked.
Fire Fight held out his hoof. “Welcome aboard.”
Air Slash shook his hoof. “Thank you. I solemnly swear by these blades I’ve forged to serve you with my life!” he declared.
They quickly packed up and headed out, leaving the sack and Turf War’s old weapons hidden away in a dark corner of the cave to rot. As they did, Air Slash and Shadow Shroud glared at each other with uncertainty. They had now committed themselves to the same cause for the same beliefs….for better or for worse…